Follow Us

More

Skyrim: 10 Most Powerful Weapons, Ranked

With the two expansion packs and the base game, Skyrim players have access to a staggering number of powerful and useful weapons. Granted, with the enchanting skill any weapon can become deadly and players will find that their own customized weapon beats a legendary sword or mythical bow any day.

But for those who want to find the most powerful weapon in the game without putting in any work there are a number of bows, blades, and axes that the player can use to become an unstoppable Dragonborne.

10 Bloodskal Blade

Stats wise the two-handed Bloodskal Blade is the same as a glass greatsword giving it a base damage of 21 and a weight of 16. While not exactly impressive on its own what really makes this weapon shine is its special ability.

With this weapon, the player can cast a wave of either vertical or horizontal energy that deals 30 damage. This wave can reach up to 15 feet, hit multiple enemies and even go through walls. It’s great for surprising foes or softening up a group of enemies before wading into melee battle.

9 Dawnbreaker

This daedric weapon is a quest reward for serving the Daedric Prince Meridia. This weapon does a basic 12 points od damage, but it deals 10 points of burn damage which makes it a decent weapon against any foe.

Given the Daedric Prince’s hatred of undead, this weapon is especially effective against the undead. Upon killing a shambling corpse the weapon has a chance to trigger a fiery explosion that will either turn or utterly eliminate any nearby undead. It’s very helpful for dealing with necromancers, vampires, or any undead in general, just don’t be a creature of the night when you wield this in battle as the Prince will not be mocked and the explosion will harm you.

8 Blade Of Woe

The Blade of Woe is a small dagger wielded by the traitorous leader of the Dark Brotherhood, Astrid. It’s obtained after the player learns of the attack on the guild and performs a Black Sacrament on Astrid as part of her dying wish.

This weapon is ideal for an assassin as it deals a base damage of 12 and has the ability to absorb 10 points of health with each strike. Player’s are strongly advised to have a high destruction skill and use sneak to get the full effect of the blade.

7 Harkon’s Sword

Wielded by the legendary vampire Lord Harkon, this blade does a paltry 8 points of base damage but possesses a number of vampiric abilities that make it worthy of a lord of the undead. The one-handed sword has the ability to absorb 15 points of health, magicka, and stamina with each strike.

This stunning ability does have the downside of being greedy on charges so the player will need a lot of filled soul gems. It also only works for a vampire but given how powerful this sword is, becoming a member of the undead is absolutely worth it.

6 Drainblood Battleaxe

A unique weapon wielded by the spectral form of a Draugr the Drainblood Battleaxe is one of four ghost weapons that’s very powerful for anyone skilled in axe fighting. The stats are great with a base damage of 21 and a weight of a shockingly low five pounds.

This two-handed battleaxe also absorbs 15 points of health with each hit. What’s even better is that unlike Harkon’s Sword this ability doesn’t require a charge meaning the player can use it an infinite number of times and never need a soul gem. You wont find a better axe in the game.

5 Bloodscythe & Soulrender

Both scimitars were wielded by Haknir Death-Brand the pirate king. Both blades deal a base damage of 13, but shine when they are wielded together while wearing Deathbrand armor. The Bloodscythe will absorb 15 points of health with a chance to lower the enemy’s armor and the Soulrender will absorb 15 points of magicka with a chance to lower magical defenses.

If the blades are wielded by a player wearing Deathbrand armor they’ll both receive a 40% boost to damage and a boost to the player’s armor rating. This combination of gear makes the player a force to be reckoned with.

4 Zephyr

The Zephyr is a dwarven bow that belonged to an unfortunate adventurer killed in an earthquake. The bow deals a base damage of 14, which is admittedly low compared to other weapons, but it’s special ability more than makes up for it.

This bow can fire arrows 30% faster than a standard bow. With this fire rate increase, it becomes the highest DPS bow in the game as the player can pump arrow after arrow into the enemy. The reason it doesn’t rank higher is that the player will burn through arrows and its low damage output per attack makes it a weak bow for sneaky archers who will want to do a lot of damage in the first hit.

3 Dwarven Black Bow Of Fate

This powerful bow is obtained after solving the puzzle inside the Dwemer ruin of Kagrumez. It has a base damage of 13 similar to an Elven Bow, but its special ability is really what you’re after.

With each strike, it has a 50% of triggering the absorption of health, magicka, and/or stamina. While it’s not a guaranteed absorption like with Harkon’s Sword it’s almost double the points and players will be fighting from a distance rather than taking damage in melee so they’ll hardly notice the tradeoff.

2 Nightingale Bow

This bow is wielded by Karliah a member of the Nightingales who gives it to the player during a Thieves Guild quest. This leveled bow is great for lower level players as it’ll rise in power as they level up before capping with a base damage of 19 once the player is level 45.

It’s special effect also improves and at level 45 gives the player the ability to freeze targets for 30 points and shock them for 15. With decent base damage and the elemental boost added on players can deal a whopping 64 points of base damage assuming there are no resistances.

1 Auriel’s Bow

The ability to damage foes from a distance where they can’t retaliate makes bows naturally the strongest weapons in the game so it’s no surprise that Auriel’s Bow is the most powerful weapon a player can find in Skyrim.

Wielded by the Elven god Auri-El himself this bow deals 13 base damage with 20 points of sun damage stacked on top for 33 points of damage and has a faster rate of fire than your average bow. This weapon is even more powerful against the undead as sun damage triples, meaning a single shot can deal 73 points of base damage!